What is catch weight?
Catch weight describes items counted in units but sold by their actual weight, so the real weight of each unit must be recorded.
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Why weight varies per unit
A wheel of cheese, a side of meat or a roll of fabric is one unit to handle, but no two weigh or measure the same. The customer pays for the actual quantity.
A fixed conversion, such as one case equals 24 units, cannot work here. The warehouse has to weigh or measure each unit.
Worked example
In this example, a customer orders 10 cheese wheels. The picker weighs each one, with results between 4.87 kg and 5.23 kg.
The total of 50.6 kg goes to the ERP, which invoices that weight. Stock records keep both the 10 wheels and their combined weight.
How Waresify handles it
Waresify covers catch weight with its variable measure module, on the Professional and Enterprise plans. It handles weight, volume, length and area.
Workers enter the measured value at receiving and at picking. Stock keeps a unit count and a measured total, measurements outside tolerance are flagged, and the ERP receives the actual figures for billing.
Questions
Is catch weight the same as multi-UOM?
No. Multi-UOM uses fixed ratios, such as 24 eaches per case. Catch weight is for items where the quantity differs per unit. Some items need both.
Does catch weight only mean weight?
The term comes from weight, but the same problem applies to length, volume and area. Waresify's module covers all four.